Great Decision on Certificate of Good Faith

On behalf of Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder, PC on Tuesday, July 12, 2011.

In Morgan v. Hartford Hospital, SC 18469, released July 12, 2011(2011), the Supreme Court ruled that the certificate of good faith and the opinion letter of a similar health care provider are statutory prerequisites to the filing of an action for medical malpractice under General Statutes § 52-190a. Therefore, the failure to provide these attachments in a form that complies with the statute constitutes insufficient process. Service of that insufficient process does not subject the defendant to the jurisdiction of the court. The jurisdiction that is found lacking is jurisdiction over the person, not the subject matter. Thus, Practice Book § 10-32 and its corresponding time and waiver rules applies herein. The defendants in Morgan admitted they did not file the motion to dismiss the complaint within 30 days of filing their appearance. Further, they filed numerous pleadings before filing their motion to dismiss. Therefore, the Supreme Court held that they waived their right to file a motion dismiss pursuant to General Statues § 52-190a.

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